Marvellous Marianne
by ChloboShoka
Summary: Marianne's back early from an ambitious project in Norway. Hannah's concerns for the future melt away.


**Marvellous Marianne**

"Mummy!" Henry's voice echoed through the top corridor of the Evans Mansion. "She's home!"

"Huh?" Hannah lifted the pillow above her head. She sprung up as soon as she saw the time on her clock. She tumbled, yawning as Henry opened the door. "Shouldn't you be getting ready for school?"

Henry dashed to her bedside. "I am ready for school. Annalise already left."

"Why didn't you go with her?" Hannah asked. "You're going to be late."

"I was about to go, but she came."

Hannah puckered her lips. "Who's she, the cat's mother?"

"I guess you could say that."

Hannah gasped when she recognised the voice from behind the door. It was Marianne. Tall. Black hair. Loved business talk, but partial to drunk karaoke. Her heart fluttered when Marianne strolled through the door with a box full of kittens.

She giggled. "Good morning, Marianne."

Marianne placed the box onto the corner of Hannah's bed and blew her a kiss. She steered her head at Henry. "Come on lad, I'll take you to school. You don't want to be scraping chewing gum again."

"Marianne," Henry said as he followed her out of Hannah's room. "Do you know my dad's dating our history teacher, Miss Gales?"

"I know."

"Is there anything you don't know?"

"Plenty."

As the voices faded, Hannah rushed about to make herself and the room look more presentable. She released the kittens. The kittens and their mother had fun discovering their new surroundings. Being the only human in the house at that moment, she used it as an opportunity to get ready. She made the bed. Had a shower. Chose to wear her best white dress and jasmine perfume. Then downstairs she went with a black tea and some cinnamon toast.

Marianne was home early. She didn't expect her to be back until the end of the month. She didn't give Hannah a lot of details about her upcoming project, but she knew it was for some rock-star in Norway. Hannah grew accustomed to Marianne staying out in Ireland. She wasn't used to her being in another country for a whole month.

She gazed at the pink calendar hanging on the wall. November 1st was when Marianne left the country. Hannah had drawn a huge heart around the box for the 30th November. She stood up, picked a pen up from the table and drew a heart on today's date: 21th November.

She finished her tea and shoved it in the dishwasher. She twirled around the kitchen floor, tiptoed into the lounge and around the sofa with her arms out wide. She jumped on the sofa, reaching out for a photo on her coffee table. In the picture were her beloved twins: Henry and Annalise Wright. Marianne was behind them. She gave them gentle touch on their shoulders and an open crescent-shaped mouth. She kissed the photo as her thumbs cradled all three faces. "My world is complete again."

The front door opened. "I'm home."

Hannah bounced up and placed the photo back on the table. She slimmed down the creases from her dress as she turned round to Marianne and curtsied. "Welcome back, Marianne. November has been dragging so much without you."

"I've only been gone for 20 days."

"It feels like a month. Anyway, what brings you back so early."

"I had a good team with me, so I managed to finish early."

"And you thought you would come and say hello."

"Well, it is my home. You said so yourself."

Hannah ran towards Marianne and squeezed her hands. "Of course it's your home: you built it with me." She leaned her head against Marianne's chest. "So I take it you've got a few days off work then."

"Yeah. I haven't made any plans yet."

"I wouldn't plan any yet," Hannah suggested. "Now come and sit down on the sofa. We can't hug like this all day."

"We can if you want to."

Hannah linked Marianne's arm and her arm together. "We're going to the sofa. And you're going to tell me everything that happened in Norway."

"Oh dear... am I in trouble? You don't use that tone of authority very often, Miss Evans."

Hannah wanted to know everything. "Let's start from the beginning. On our last call, we got cut off."

Marianne blushed. "Sorry about that. The signal was getting fuzzy on my end." She got her phone out her pocket. "Here's the house I worked on."

"Oh my gosh." Hannah gasped at all the guitars lined up by the fireplace. "I've never seen so many guitars in all my life."

"He says he has over a hundred of them."

"Does he even play any of them?"

"He'd have a job," Marianne chuckled, "he's a real midget."

"Well well done you," Hannah said as her eyes lit up at the large fireplace. "It looks like a fantastic home. The colours go well together and that fireplace is superb. And... there's even a bar near the garden. Luke would have loved this."

"Your ex-husband likes anything that involves alcohol."

"Yes..." Hannah nodded. She and Luke were together for a decade and married for seven years. Hannah used to think that she and Luke would be married for life. Till death do them part, and she believed it. She never thought that buying the mansion would lead to their divorce. She didn't expect to fall into Marianne's arms either.

She knew what it was like to fall in love. She also knew what it was like to fall out of love.

Marianne cupped her cheeks. "Are you alright? Maybe I shouldn't have said that."

Hannah shook her head and kissed her lips. "I'm fine. I was just thinking of things."

"What sort of things?"

"Just thinking about the future." Hannah saw no point in lying. "It will soon be our twelfth anniversary."

"We've got eight months and three days."

"I know it sounds like we have aged, but time flies. Before you know it, it will be July before we even get a chance to blink."

"That's quite an exaggeration."

"Oh, you know what I mean."

"Actually... I don't have a clue what you're on about."

Hannah hugged her tight. "The truth is that I'm scared of losing you. I don't want to lose our romantic spark. You're so precious to me. I know you said that I shouldn't base my happiness on one person, but you've turned my life around."

"If you were really going to lose me, would I have come back for you?" She had a point. Marianne patted her back. "No stop being so silly. I've told you that you don't have to worry about me. And if it makes you feel any better, no I haven't slept with any men...or women for that matter."

"I know you'll always be faithful, but I just can't help but worry about you all the time. I know we're both strong and independent women, but you still know how to make my heart go all over the place."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

It was Hannah's turn to blush. She could feel the scarlet heat on her cheeks. "I guess it's not so much of a bad thing after all."

"From what you've just told me, it sounds like you've been missing me like crazy. " Marianne started to play with her golden blonde locks. "I think we've got some catching up to do. How about we let the twins spend the week at their dads whilst we go on a little holiday."

"Oh Marianne: you're simply marvellous."


End file.
